Don’t Punish Employee Failure. Reward It.

What is the one change that many small firms could make that would make their companies more attractive places to work?

SHARON HADARY: Make your small business an attractive place to work by encouraging employees to fail!

People thrive in environments where they feel safe trying new approaches to get the job done, proposing revolutionary products, and seeking out nontraditional alliances. No longer do companies have the luxury of beta testing every product and process. Often you have to just jump into the market and see what happens—making modifications along the way.

There will be great successes and spectacular failures. The companies people want to work for recognize that failure most often is not about the individual’s failure to perform but about being willing to take chance, celebrate the successes, learn from the failures, and move forward.

Sharon Hadary (@hadaryco) is the founding and former executive director of the Center for Women’s Business Research, an adjunct professor in the doctorate of management program at the University of Maryland University College and has co-written a new book, “How Women Lead: The 8 Essential Strategies Successful Women Know.”

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